Man Pleads Guilty In Roommate's 2014 Murder

ATLANTA, GA -- A man has pleaded guilty in connection to a 2014 murder after which he texted a picture of the victim's body after he shot the man in the head. Teon Graham, 26, shot and killed Tion Casterman, 25, after the two got into an argument in their SW Atlanta shared apartment.

Graham claimed that Casterman owed him $5,000 from a fraudulent student loan they worked together to obtain. Graham said Casterman refused to pay him the money, and at some point during the argument he shot the victim, once, in the back of the head.

Graham then called a mutual friend and told her that he killed the victim. The friend didn't believe Graham, so he texted her a picture of Casterman’s body. Graham then drove to another friend’s house and forced him, at gunpoint, to help dispose of the victim’s body. Graham and his friend returned to his apartment, and the friend saw Casterman’s body lying upon the hallway floor. The friend unwillingly helped the defendant load Casterman’s body into the victim’s trunk, and Graham drove to West Blocton, Ala., where he dumped the body in a tree lined area.

The next morning, Graham drove the victim’s vehicle to the home of the mother of his child in Houma, Louisiana to hide out. Shortly afterward, Graham’s girlfriend and her mother received anonymous Facebook messages from people informing them of Casterman’s disappearance and Graham’s suspected involvement in the crime. Graham’s girlfriend’s mother immediately called the local sheriff’s office.

Graham was arrested on an unrelated larceny warrant out of Alabama, but admitted to Casterman’s murder during his interview with detectives. Graham also provided the location of Casterman’s body. Police also found a .380 caliber pistol in Graham’s luggage which was matched to the bullet found in Casterman’s head. A large quantity of blood found in the trunk of Casterman’s vehicle also matched the victim.

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